Tamim Iqbal is a remarkable addition in the IPL 2012 ‘Season 5’, and will be the only Bangladesh player in the auction, at a reserve price of US$ 50,000 (Taka 42 Lacs) .

Update, Feb 4, 2012: Tamim Iqbal unsold at IPL 2012 Auction.

The three-member Bangladesh national selection committee prepared a list of eight players for the IPL auction that also included Nasir Hossain, Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah and Rubel Hossain. But nobody make up the final shortlist released by BCCI yesterday except Tamim Iqbal. Though, Tamim was not in the preliminary list of 183 players list, released by BCCI on January 20, 2012. Tamim was rebuffed by the IPL franchises on last three seasons, when he was in good form. Tamim has the ability to trash any sort of bowling attack on his day, but reality seems very unlikely for any IPL franchises bid for him.

Bangladesh’s Sakib al Hasan is already under contract with Kolkata Knight Riders which runs upto 2013 and thus will not be put on auction. Mashrafee was previously involved in the cash-rich event, though the playing experience of the $600,000 KKR player was limited to one game. But he was not included at the auction for the last edition due to injury. ‘Mashrafee is an ideal Twenty20 player and he also recently showed signs of recovering from his knee surgery. By the time IPL begins, we are hopeful he will be completely fit,’ said chief selector Akram Khan. ‘We also selected Omi [Jahirul] as he is an in-form cricketer. His plus point is wicket-keeping, so we will not be surprised if he is picked by any franchise,’ he said.

IPL 2012 Season 5

The chief selector added that they considered current form, not past records of the players and this was the reason for the three BPL icons Mohammad Ashraful, Shahriar Nafees and Alok Kapali for not getting a place at the auction. Ashraful is one of the four Bangladeshi cricketers to have played in the IPL alongside Sakib, Mashrafee and left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak.

Meanwhile, VVS Laxman, S Sreesanth and Brendon McCullum – all part of the now-defunct Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the 2011 IPL – have commanded the highest reserve price of US$ 400,000 in the final auction shortlist for the 2012 season. The Kochi trio joins England offspinner Graeme Swann, who is yet to feature in the IPL, as the four players to command the maximum base price in the 144-strong list.

On January 20, the BCCI had released a preliminary list comprising of 183 players, who hadn’t participated in earlier seasons of the IPL. That has been pruned further by the IPL organisers based on the feedback received from the franchises. The Kochi players, who weren’t part of the earlier list, were expectedly included, and the entire roster of players will go under the hammer on February 4 in Bangalore.

“The shortlist comprises some outstanding cricket talent,” the IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla said. “Given that it was prepared on the basis of the feedback of the franchises themselves, the stage is set for an exciting and eventful player auction, this Saturday. The franchises purchased the bulk of their respective squads in 2011. Their aim at the upcoming auction will be to bring in some players who can make a difference to their prospects in the tournament. The auction will mark the formal opening of IPL 2012.”

In all, 16 Kochi players feature in the list including the newly-appointed Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene (reserve price US$ 300,000) and the retired offspinner Muttiah Muralitharan (US$ 200,000). India allrounder Ravindra Jadeja, whose stock has been on the rise following a successful return to ODI action, was pegged at a surprisingly low US$ 100,000.

Indian interest in the auction will be limited to eight newly-added players, all capped. Seven of them were part of the Kochi franchise last year while the eighth one is the fast bowler VRV Singh. The preliminary list had 25 Zimbabwe internationals, but only seven of them made it to the final draft.